The impact of training for day-care educators on childhood anaemia in nurseries: an institutional randomised clinical trial

Abstract

Objective: To test the impact of training for educators on the health of children enrolled in public and philanthropic day-care nurseries. Design: A randomised, institutional, non-blind clinical trial was conducted. An educational intervention was performed in four day-care centres and the control group consisted of four other day-care centres. Interviews with the mothers, collection of blood from the children by digital puncture and anthropometry were performed. The chosen indicator for the improvement of health was anaemia (Hb ,11 g/dl). An unconditional logistic regression model was set for the risk factors for anaemia, considering associations with P # 0?05 as statistically significant. Setting: Eight day-care centres in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Subjects: Two hundred and fifty-two children from day-care nurseries. Results: The children from the day-care centres that were not subject to intervention presented a 2?11 times greater risk (95% CI 1?04, 4?30; P 5 0?40) of having anaemia at the end of the study independent of the control variables (sex, age, time in the day-care centre, anaemia at the beginning of the study, maternal age, use of oral iron supplements, number of siblings, per capita family income, use of antibiotics and the necessity of avoidable hospitalisations) used in the construction of the final logistical model. Conclusions:The assessed educational intervention promoted significant changes in the health status of the children, reinforcing the importance of training for professionals who care for young children in day-care centres in developing countries in order to promote child health.

Risk Factors for Anemia among Brazilian Infants from the 2006 National Demographic Health Survey

“…Furthermore, the repeated characterisation of anemia as a serious public health problem by the scientific literature and the WHO [1, 2, 30], especially in developing countries such as Brazil, indicates that health managers and professionals should elaborate and execute more direct, more focused, and more integrated strategies to promote child health, involving all public health and education systems to effectively control iron deficiency in infants [31, 32]. …”

Preditores da introdução de alimentos industrializados na infância: estudo em creches públicas

“…Em artigo de revisão, realizado em 2014, Masquio e colaboradores 24 , ao descreverem a influência do aleitamento materno na obesidade, encontraram associação positiva entre a prática e a redução da prevalência da doença, reforçando o efeito protetor do aleitamento materna e consequentemente protegendo as crianças contra a obesidade infantil e doenças associadas 7,15,20 . 19,25 .…”

Consumption of industrialized food by infants attending child day care centers

“…The present study was developed in seven public and philanthropic daycare centers within the Coordination of Education of Santo Amaro in the municipality of São Paulo, which were part of the project " Projeto Crecheficiente - Impacto do treinamento de educadores de creches públicas/filantrópicas nas práticas higiênico-dietéticas e na saúde/nutrição dos lactentes (Impact of training educators in public/philanthropic daycare centers on hygiene and dietary practices and on infant health and nutrition)". The process of selection of the daycare centers and the criteria used are described in another publication ( 10 ) .…”

“…Desenvolveu-se o presente estudo em berçários de sete creches públicas e filantrópicas da Coordenadoria de Educação de Santo Amaro da Cidade de São Paulo, as quais fizeram parte do "Projeto Crecheficiente - Impacto do treinamento de educadoras de creches públicas/filantrópicas nas práticas higiênico-dietéticas e na saúde/nutrição dos lactentes". O processo de seleção das creches e os critérios adotados estão descritos em outra publicação ( 10 ) .…”